29.11.2021  INFORMATION AND PUBLIC RELATIONS DEPARTMENT OF KALININ NPP

International Group of the IAEA experts affirmed the commitment of the Kalinin NPP to safety principles

Experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) noted the commitment of the Kalinin NPP to safety principles. They also detected areas for further improvement and some good practices that will be used in the global nuclear industry.

Let us remind that from November 8 to 25, 2021, the largest international operational safety audit, the OSART mission (Operational Safety Review Team) took place for the first time at the Kalinin NPP. It was conducted by the IAEA by invitation of ROSATOM and Rosenergoatom.

At the final meeting, Team Leader, IAEA Senior Nuclear Safety Officer Ronan Kavellek noted that safety at the Kalinin NPP is a personnel-recognized value and its requirements are rigorously observed.

“This is my fourth visit to Rosenergoatom and its branches, and at the Kalinin NPP I saw the best level of training. Over the past years, the plant has done a great job to improve operational safety,” Ronan Kavellek said. He added that leadership for safety is manifested in the commitment of senior managers to safety issues. The plant employees are open, honest and actively accept proposals for further improving operational safety.

In addition to the leader, the OSART group included 10 experts from the Czech Republic, France, Germany, the Slovak Republic, South Africa, Sweden, Great Britain, and the USA. The audit was conducted in such spheres as leadership and management for safety, training and qualification of personnel, operations, repairs, technical support, operating experience, radiation safety, chemistry and accident management.

The experts interviewed the nuclear power plant personnel, observed the execution of production operations, analyzed the documentation regarding specific areas of assessment, and also studied the methods and content of communication between management and personnel. At the same time, the experts did not assess the Kalinin NPP for compliance with the requirements of the national regulatory body and did not compare the plant's operational safety with other nuclear power plants in the world.

During their work, the experts detected 8 areas where further improvements are possible, and identified a number of good practices that will be used in the global nuclear industry. “International peer reviews are an important aspect of improving nuclear safety. The exchange of best practices and experiences from other plants has high value to the nuclear industry. The results of the OSART mission and the formulated improvement proposals will be used to continuously improve the operation of the Kalinin nuclear power plant, ” summarized the director of the Kalinin nuclear power plant, Viktor Ignatov. He noted that all areas will be improved and requested an OSART monitoring mission in 18 months.

On behalf of the management of the operating organization, Alexander Shutikov, first deputy general director for NPP Operation of Rosenergoatom, noted at the final meeting that all improvement actions will be designed for all other NPP sites of Rosenergoatom, and when preparing response measures to personnel the Kalinin NPP will be fully supported by the EA. He expressed confidence that corrective actions will be effective, and OSART experts will see this in 2023.

In conclusion, the expert group handed over the draft report to the plant management, which can make their comments on the information contained in it and send them to the

IAEA. The final report will be sent within three months through official channels to the State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom, Rostekhnadzor and the Kalinin NPP.


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